APOD: 2024 November 25 Б The Horsehead Nebula
25.11.2024

One of the most identifiable nebulas in the sky, the Horsehead Nebula in Orion, is part of a large, dark, molecular cloud. Also known as Barnard 33, the unusual shape was first discovered on a photographic plate in the late 1800s.

A Bubbling Galaxy Center
12.06.2000

What's happening in the center of this galaxy? Close inspection of the center of NGC 4438, as visible in this recently released representative-color image by the Hubble Space Telescope, reveals an unusual bubble of hot gas, colored in red.

Dumbbell Nebula Close Up from Hubble
11.02.2003

What causes unusual knots of gas and dust in planetary nebulas? Seen previously in the Ring Nebula, the Helix Nebula, and the Eskimo Nebula, the knots' existence was not predicted previously and still not well understood.

In the Vicinity of the Cone Nebula
12.05.2003

Strange shapes and textures can be found in neighborhood of the Cone Nebula. The unusual shapes originate from fine interstellar dust reacting in complex ways with the energetic light and hot gas being expelled by the young stars.

Martian Moon Phobos from MGS
1.07.2003

Why is Phobos so dark? Phobos, the largest and innermost of two Martian moons, is the darkest moon in the entire Solar System. Its unusual orbit and color indicate that it may be a captured asteroid composed of a mixture of ice and dark rock.

M57: The Ring Nebula
4.05.1998

It looked like a ring on the sky. Hundreds of years ago astronomers noticed a nebula with a most unusual shape. Now known as M57 or NGC 6720, the gas cloud became popularly known as the Ring Nebula.

The N44 Superbubble
6.02.2006

What created this gigantic hole? The vast emission nebula N44 in our neighboring galaxy the Large Magellanic Cloud has a large, 250 light-year hole and astronomers are trying to figure out why. One possibility is particle winds expelled by massive stars in the bubble's interior that are pushing out the glowing gas.

Europa Rising
7.05.2007

When passing Jupiter on your way to Pluto, what should you look for? NASA pondered just this question recently, and the response from one space enthusiast was to capture the above breathtaking moonrise.

Galaxies Collide in NGC 3256
6.05.2008

Galaxies don't normally look like this. NGC 3256 actually shows a current picture of two galaxies that are slowly colliding. Quite possibly, in hundreds of millions of years, only one galaxy will remain.

Fata Morgana: A Possibly Titanic Mirage
15.04.2012

Did this mirage help sink the Titanic? The optical phenomenon called Fata Morgana can make strange shapes or a false wall of water appear above a watery horizon. When conditions are right, light reflecting...